Urban Studies

Research Priority Area

The urban environment has become the ‘natural' habitat for more than half of the world population. Many important social issues, such as quality of life, inequality, conflict, identity and culture, and pollution, are now first and foremost linked to the urban context. More and more, the need is felt to address such issues from an interdisciplinary perspective.

The Urban Studies priority research program therefore builds on the
accumulated theoretical insights, methodological expertise and empirical
knowledge of social scientists, geographers and planners at the University of
Amsterdam. It focuses on the mutual relations between key social, economic,
cultural and political issues and the multifaceted urban environment. The
program aims at international academic, disciplinary and interdisciplinary
research with frequent interactions between science, practice and policies,
locally, in the Netherlands, Europe and beyond.